It's nearing the end of another year and that can mean only one thing: opportunities for journalists to write quick articles and get paid without thinking too much or working too hard. During these times of "no significant inflation" and all those holiday alcohol bills coming due, it's more important than ever for those of us in the fourth estate.

Rather than a garden-variety 'Best of / Worst of' list, we're doing a garden-variety rundown of new words added to the vernacular in 2021.

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schifft·y
/ˈSHiftē/

adjective informal
adjective: schiffty; comparative adjective: schifftier; superlative adjective: schifftiest

(of a person or their manner) appearing deceitful or evasive, especially with respect to achieving political ends through false statements or doctored evidence.
"a schiffty, partisan politician"

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let's go bran·don
/fək jō ˈBīd-in/

phrasal idiom
common greeting or salutation, expressing solidarity with the disenfranchised.

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var·i·ant
/ˈverēənt/

noun
noun: variant; plural noun: variants

a form or version of something that differs from other forms of the same thing but causes abject terror and complete loss of prefrontal cortex reasoning skills in humans.
"a new variant has been found, I hope our hard-working and efficient government takes control of every aspect of our lives so I don't get sick"

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an·ti-rac·ism
/ˈanˌtī-ˈrāˌsizəm/

noun
noun: anti-racism
(synonym with racism)

prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against a person or people on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group.
"anti-racism is a way of blaming your problems on other people, based on their skin color"

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free·dom
/ˈfrēdəm/

noun

the archaic idea of having the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

The dictionary.

Misinformation

mis·​in·​for·​ma·​tion | \ ˌmis-ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shən

noun

Information that is true, but the larger deplorable segment of the American citizenry is not supposed to know, or think.

The fact that the HEPA filter for all aircraft cabin air is filtered and completely refreshed every two or three minutes, meaning there is no logical reason to wear a mask while traveling by airplane is misinformation.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/preference

ex·po·den·tial /ˌekspəˈden(t)SH(ə)l/

1. term used by elderly man bordering on dementia; supposedly meaning (of an increase) becoming more and more rapid.

"my son is smoking crack at an expodential rate"

Most Equally Esteemed Komrads,

jackalopelipsky wrote:Misinformation
mis·​in·​for·​ma·​tion | \ ˌmis-ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shən

noun

Information that is true, but the larger deplorable segment of the American citizenry is not supposed to know, or think.

The fact that the HEPA filter for all aircraft cabin air is filtered and completely refreshed every two or three minutes, meaning there is no logical reason to wear a mask while traveling by airplane is misinformation.

I am certain I dated Miss Information in High School. Also Miss Appropriation, Miss Representation, Miss Anthrope, Miss Teree, Miss Place, Miss Behave, Miss Chievious, Miss Carriage, Miss Construed, and Miss Andry. I am sure I took Miss Take to the Prom. There were probably many others but it was a long time ago.

Adrift in the Current Truth ™,

Red Salmon

PS. Miss Conception was a fun date.

I dated a Miss Wright for a while. Her first name was "Always." It was not so fun.

Miss Demeanor could sometimes be fun, but turned out she was friends with Miss Spentyouth, so I had to straighten out my act. Been with the Miss Us ever since.

I married Miss Take. Unfortunately, she lived up to her name and took all she could before running off with somebody else.

Reminds me of the divorced Barbie. Costs 50 times the regular Barbie. Includes Ken's car, Ken's house, Ken's boat, Ken's motorcycle, and Ken's bank account. Gets regular payments out of Ken's paycheck. Sleeps around a lot, but never remarried.

Well, that was a tangent, most esteemed comrades. Like gulag jokes they never grow old.

'pelipsky goes back to Colonel O's discovery at Webster's concerning offensive use of the word preference. Should we be comforted by Webster's preference concerning offensive preferences???

To read this definition the student of English language must be 'this' tall, like at amusement parks???

jackalopelipsky wrote:...To read this definition the student of English language must be 'this' tall, like at amusement parks???

I denounce your exclusionary (and racist?) limitation of ability to read English by our height-challenged comrades. Bad bunny. back in your hutch.

Ivan the Stakhanovets wrote:

jackalopelipsky wrote:...To read this definition the student of English language must be 'this' tall, like at amusement parks???

I denounce your exclusionary (and racist?) limitation of ability to read English by our height-challenged comrades. Bad bunny. back in your hutch.

Hutch?? Ivan, you think the 'pelipsky is gulag prisoner with a hutch?? You been drinkin' Russian vodka made from Chernobyl grown beets, again???

At one Internment Center, where gulag prisoners are put through rigorous Intern training, the whole camp grew tired of telling the same great jokes, so the Interns self-ascribed numbers for each joke. Oh, the good times the Interns of the gulag facility had as Intern by Intern would tap a numerical code on the water pipe, and all the Interns would laugh remembering the correlative joke and drop off to sleep happy in internment.

It all worked great till a new Intern was added to the Internment Center. This new intern was limited in his ability to recall the past. This new intern was illiterate in that regard. One night all the Interns joined in gulag joke telling spree. Oh, Ivan, the water pipes were tapped out, it was so good. Then the new Intern thoughtcrimed by tapping a numerical code.

The entire Interment Center group of interns went quiet. It was kind of scary how quiet the Interment Center went. Too quiet, Ivan.

The new intern was horrified at obvious error and terror nearly overwhelmed him. The too short and not wide enough sheet was clutched tightly that night.

The next morning, 'pelipsky happened to be standing next to intern at roll call. "What did I do wrong?" the intern whispered nervously towards 'pelipsky's direction.

'pelipsky just had to intern the intern properly, "Well, new intern, some interns can tell a gulag joke, and some can't."

internforelocktug,
'pelipsky
Russian Asset
#BR 549